Side PocketReview

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Data East's old-school billiards sim is back, for better or worse.

By Lucas M. Thomas

Well, well, well. If it isn't good old Side Pocket. This old-school billiards sim was a fairly prolific design around 20 years ago, as developer Data East did its best to bring the game of pool out of smoke-filled lounges and sports bars and onto video game systems. Versions of Side Pocket shipped for the NES, the SNES, the Sega Genesis, the Game Gear and more. It was a game that got around.

The version we're getting an encore appearance from today, though, is 1990's black-and-white Game Boy edition. It takes the green felt tables and multi-colored balls and monochromes them all in a way that can't be described as anything other than archaic here in 2011.

The game is still OK, as 20-year-old pool sims go, since it's still fairly fun to move the blinking line around that indicates your next shot's trajectory, and then send the cue ball flying with a well-timed power selection on the bouncing, golf-game-esque meter that appears. The game also limits your shots and occasionally places bonus stars over pockets in the table, encouraging you to attempt to sink your next shot into that highlighted hole – that's cool.

But those moments of amusement are fleeting, and after the brief novelty of seeing greyscaled 8-bit balls bounce around again in all their tiny, pixilated glory you're just left with a few-frills package that's been outclassed in features and visual appeal by every other pool game that's been developed in the past two decades.

The Verdict

So Side Pocket is a certain skip, unworthy of your three digital dollars. But the good news that comes out of its release? It's the first 3DS Virtual Console appearance from Data East, and that means better games like Lock 'N Chase and BurgerTime Deluxe should be shipping into the United States' eShop soon.